Cloud game streaming with client side asset integration

ABSTRACT

A method for streaming gameplay of a cloud video game is provided, including: executing the cloud video game to generate gameplay video; streaming the gameplay video over a network to a client device, the gameplay video being presented by the client device on a display; during the streaming of the gameplay video, transmitting one or more visual assets over the network to the client device, the visual assets being cached by the client device; wherein the cached visual assets are processed by the client device and combined into the gameplay video before being presented on the display.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This application claims priority as a continuation of U.S. applicationSer. No. 14/845,104, filed Sep. 3, 2015, entitled “Local ApplicationQuick Start with Cloud Transitioning,” which claims priority to U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 62/207,285, filed Aug. 19, 2015,entitled “Local Application Quick Start with Cloud Transitioning,” thedisclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND Field of the Invention

The present disclosure relates to systems and methods for providingcloud video games for user interaction, and more specifically to localvideo game initialization with transitioning to cloud streaming of thevideo game.

Description of the Related Art

A current area of rapidly growing technology is the field of cloudgaming. Users are able to access a number of games on a cloud gamingsite over a network, such as the Internet, and begin interaction/playingthe game. In order to select a game for game play, a user accesseshis/her account on the cloud gaming site. The user is provided with alist of games that are available for the user account for game play.When the user selects a game for viewing and/or game play, the user willhave to wait till the user account is assigned to a cloud gamingmachine, the game code is loaded, graphics engines initialized, graphicsare loaded, game and user settings are uploaded, etc., before he canaccess the game for game play, for example. Furthermore, as theprogression through initial content of the video game is generally alinear process, the user will be required to wait after each selectionpoint or other break point in the initial content of the video game, asthe subsequent content is loaded, executed, and streamed to the usersclient device. The wait time for accessing and playing a select game maybe longer for games that are graphic intensive. The waiting may causethe user to lose interest in the game and to stop interacting with thegame site, resulting in a potential loss to the game developer/game siteowner.

It is within this context that embodiments of the invention arise.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide methods and systems thatare used to provide cloud-based video games.

In accordance with some implementations, a method is provided, includingthe following method operations: receiving at a client device a firstcommand to initiate a cloud video game; in response to receiving thefirst command, retrieving, by the client device, initial content for thecloud video game from a client local storage; rendering the initialcontent to a display device connected to the client device, the renderedinitial content defining content for the cloud video game that isconfigured to be rendered prior to rendering interactive gameplaycontent of the cloud video game; further in response to receiving thefirst command, sending a first request from the client device to a cloudgaming service to access the cloud video game, the cloud gaming servicebeing configured to, in response to receiving the first request, assignthe client device to a gaming machine that is configured to execute thecloud video game and prepare for streaming of interactive gameplaycontent generated by the executing cloud video game to the clientdevice; receiving at the client device a second command to initiateinteractive gameplay of the cloud video game; in response to receivingthe second command, sending a second request from the client device tothe cloud gaming service, the cloud gaming service being configured to,in response to receiving the second request, initiate streaming of theinteractive gameplay content generated by the executing cloud video gameto the client device.

In some implementations, the rendered initial content does not affect alevel of user progress or accomplishment within a gameplay context ofthe cloud video game.

In some implementations, the rendered initial content defines one ormore of a recitation of legal information, a logo presentation, a splashscreen, a loading screen, a rating screen, a menu.

In some implementations, the rendered initial content defines aconfiguration procedure for an interface device that is configured toprovide user-defined input for the cloud video game.

In some implementations, the streaming of the interactive gameplaycontent to the client device is defined by transmission of a videostream and an audio stream from the cloud gaming service to the clientdevice for rendering by the client device.

In some implementations, the cloud gaming service is configured toprepare for streaming of interactive gameplay content by accessing savedgame data and defining a state of the executing cloud video game inaccordance with the saved game data.

In accordance with some implementations, a method is provided, includingthe following method operations: receiving at a client device a firstcommand to initiate a cloud video game; in response to receiving thefirst command, retrieving, by the client device, initial content for thecloud video game from a client local storage; rendering the initialcontent to a display device; further in response to receiving the firstcommand, sending a first request from the client device to a cloudgaming service to access the cloud video game, the cloud gaming servicebeing configured to, in response to receiving the first request, executethe cloud video game and prepare for streaming of interactive gameplaycontent generated by the executing cloud video game to the clientdevice; receiving at the client device a second command to initiateinteractive gameplay of the cloud video game; in response to receivingthe second command, sending a second request from the client device tothe cloud gaming service, the cloud gaming service being configured to,in response to receiving the second request, initiate streaming of theinteractive gameplay content generated by the executing cloud video gameto the client device.

In some implementations, the rendered initial content does not affect alevel of user progress or accomplishment within a gameplay context ofthe cloud video game.

In some implementations, the rendered initial content defines one ormore of a recitation of legal information, a logo presentation, a splashscreen, a loading screen, a rating screen, a menu, or a configurationprocedure for an interface device that is configured to provideuser-defined input for the cloud video game.

In some implementations, the streaming of the interactive gameplaycontent to the client device is defined by transmission of a videostream and an audio stream from the cloud gaming service to the clientdevice for rendering by the client device.

In some implementations, the cloud gaming service is configured toprepare for streaming of interactive gameplay content by accessing savedgame data and defining a state of the executing cloud video game inaccordance with the saved game data.

In some implementations, the method further includes: further inresponse to receiving the second command and initiating streaming of theinteractive gameplay content to the client device, receiving user inputat the client device defined from user interactivity with theinteractive gameplay content, and transmitting the user input from theclient device to the cloud gaming service for processing by theexecuting video game.

In some implementations, the method further includes: receiving at theclient device a third command to terminate gameplay of the video game;in response to receiving the third command, sending a third request fromthe client device to the cloud gaming service, the cloud gaming servicebeing configured to, in response to receiving the third request,determine whether an update to the initial content that is stored in theclient local storage is required, and if so, then send the update to theclient device.

In accordance with implementations of the disclosure, a method isprovided, including the following method operations: executing a cloudvideo game by a cloud gaming machine, the executing cloud video gamebeing configured to generate video content for streaming to a clientdevice; identifying cacheable visual content that is configured to becached at the client device, the cacheable visual content including oneor more visual assets; sending a mixed data stream to the client devicethat includes the video content and the cacheable visual content,wherein the client device is configured to store the cacheable visualcontent to a client cache, and wherein the client device is furtherconfigured to assemble the video content with one or more of the visualassets to define a client image stream for rendering to a display.

In some implementations, the executing cloud video game is configured toidentify the visual assets that have been stored to the client cache,and wherein generating the video content is configured to exclude thevisual assets that have been stored to the client cache from thegenerated video content.

In some implementations, the executing cloud video game is configured togenerate identification data identifying the one or more of the visualassets to be assembled with the video content, wherein the mixed datastream includes the identification data.

In some implementations, the identification data further defines aspatial or temporal location within image frames of the video content atwhich the one or more of the visual assets is to be inserted into thevideo content.

In some implementations, identifying and sending the cacheable contentto the client device is in response to determining that a gameplaycompletion of the cloud video game has exceeded a predefined threshold.

Other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent fromthe following detailed description, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example the principles ofthe invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention, together with further advantages thereof, may best beunderstood by reference to the following description taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1A illustrates a simplified block diagram of an exemplary systemthat is used to preload game content onto a cloud game server, inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1B is a flow diagram conceptually illustrating various operationswhich are performed for streaming a cloud video game to a client device,in accordance with implementations of the disclosure.

FIG. 2 conceptually illustrates a system for cloud gaming with localapplication quick start functionality, in accordance withimplementations of the disclosure.

FIG. 3 illustrates a system for providing cache-optimized cloud gaming,in accordance with implementations of the disclosure.

FIG. 4 conceptually illustrates the flow of data to provide for localcache-optimized cloud video game streaming from a cloud gaming service,in accordance with implementations of the disclosure.

FIG. 5 illustrates a method for providing local application quick startfunctionality, in accordance with implementations of the disclosure.

FIG. 6 illustrates a method for providing local application quick startfunctionality in accordance with implementations of the disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a graph depicting data bandwidth versus time, comparingbandwidth utilization for an existing conventional game streaming setupto one that employs a client cache, in accordance with implementationsof the disclosure.

FIG. 8 illustrates an exemplary Information Service Providerarchitecture for delivering informational content and services to userswho are geographically dispersed and connected via a network, inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates exemplary components of a computing device used forcontrolling content presented to a user, in accordance with oneembodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth inorder to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. Itwill be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that the presentinvention may be practiced without some or all of these specificdetails. In other instances, well known process steps have not beendescribed in detail in order not to obscure the present invention.

Several operations are performed by a server(s) within a data centerassociated with a cloud gaming site when a user request is received fora game title. When the cloud gaming site receives a user request, a datacenter hosting the game associated with the selected game title isidentified and the request is sent to the identified data center forinstantiating the game for the selected game title. In response to therequest, a server at the data center identifies the game code, loads theidentified game code and initializes the files related to the game codein preparation for presenting the game content to a user. Game dataassociated with a game includes generic game data and user-specific gamedata. Therefore, initializing the files includes identifying, loading,and initializing generic game data and user-specific game data.Initializing generic game data may include initializing a graphicsengine, installing graphics data, initializing sound files, installingart work, etc. Initializing user specific data may include locating andinstalling user data, user history, game history, etc. Loading of thegeneric game data may take anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutesdepending on the complexity of the game/graphics of the game.

While the generic game data is being loaded and initialized, a “splash”screen may be provided for rendering at the client device. A splashscreen may be designed to provide representative images of the game thatis being loaded, to allow a user a preview of the type of game that isbeing loaded. Once the generic game data is loaded, the audio contentmay be rendered and a selection/navigation screen is presented for userselection/customization. User selection input provided at theselection/navigation screen may include game level selection, gameicon(s) selection, game mode selection, game winnings, otheruser-related data that may require uploading of additional game content.Uploading of user selection input can cause additional delay before thegame content is made available to the user for game play. In someembodiments, game content is made available by streaming the gamecontent from the game cloud system to a user's computing device forviewing and interacting. After loading user specific data, the gamecontent is available for game play.

FIG. 1A illustrates an exemplary system used to load game files for agame available through a cloud gaming site. The system includes aplurality of client devices 100 that are communicatively connected tothe cloud gaming site 104 over a network 102, such as the Internet. Whena request to access the cloud gaming site 104 is received from a clientdevice 100, the cloud gaming site 104 accesses user account information106 stored in a user data store 108 to identify a user associated with aclient device through which the request is initiated. In someembodiments, the cloud gaming site may also validate the identified userin order to determine all the games the user is authorized to view/play.Following user account identification/validation, the cloud gaming siteaccesses a game titles data store 110 to identify the game titles thatare available at the game cloud site for the user account initiating therequest. The game titles data store 110, in turn, interacts with a gamesdatabase 112 to obtain the game titles for all the games that areavailable for the cloud gaming site. As new games are introduced, thegames database 112 will be updated with the game code and the gametitles data store 110 will be provided with game titles information forthe newly introduced games. The client device from where the request isinitiated may or may not be registered with the cloud gaming site, whenthe request was initiated. If the user of the client device initiatingthe request is not a registered user, then the cloud gaming site mayidentify the user as a new user and select the game titles (for e.g., adefault set of game titles) that are appropriate for a new user. Theidentified game titles are returned to the client device for presentingon a display screen 100-a, as shown in FIG. 1A.

User interaction at one of the game titles rendered on the client deviceis detected and a signal is sent to the cloud gaming site. The signalincludes the game title information where the user interaction wasdetected and the user interaction registered at the game title. Inresponse to the signal received from the client device, the cloud gamingsite proactively determines a data center where the game is being hostedand sends a signal to the identified data center to load the gameassociated with the game title for which the user interaction isdetected. In some embodiments, more than one data center may be hostingthe game. In such embodiments, the cloud gaming site may determine thegeo location of the client device initiating the request and identify adata center that is geographically close to the client device and signalthe data center to pre-load the game. The geo location of the user maybe determined using a Global Position System (GPS) mechanism within theclient device, the client's IP address, the client's ping information,to name a few. Of course, the aforementioned ways to detect the geolocation of the user may be exemplary and other types of mechanisms ortools may be used to determine the geo location of the user.Identification of a data center that is close to the client device canminimize latency during user interaction with the game. In someembodiments, the identified data center may not have the requiredbandwidth/capacity to host the game or may be overused. In theseembodiments, the cloud gaming site may identify a second data centerthat is geographically close to the client device. The loading of thegame includes loading game code and executing an instance of the game.

In response to receiving the signal from the cloud gaming site, theidentified data center may select a server at the data center toinstantiate the game on the server. The server is selected based on thehardware/software capabilities available and the game requirements. Theserver may include a plurality of game consoles and the server maydetermine which one of the plurality of game consoles to use to load thegame. The game console may be similar to an independent game console, ormay be a rack-mounted server or a blade server. The blade server, inturn, may include a plurality of server blades with each blade havingrequired circuitry for instantiating a single dedicated application,such as the game. Of course, the game console described above isexemplary and should not be considered restrictive. Other types of gameconsoles, including game stations, etc., and other forms of blade servermay also be engaged for hosting the identified game.

Once the game console is identified, the generic game-related code forthe game is loaded onto the game console and a signal is returned to theclient device via the cloud gaming site over the network identifying thegame console on which the game is instantiated. The loaded game is thusmade available to the user.

FIG. 1B is a flow diagram conceptually illustrating various operationswhich are performed for streaming a cloud video game to a client device,in accordance with implementations of the disclosure. The gaming system118 executes a video game and generates raw (uncompressed) video 120 andaudio 122. The video 120 and audio 122 are captured and encoded forstreaming purposes, as indicated at reference 124 in the illustrateddiagram. The encoding can provide for compression of the video and audiostreams to reduce bandwidth usage and optimize the gaming experience.Examples of encoding formats include H.265/MPEG-H, H.264/MPEG-4,H.263/MPEG-4, H.262/MPEG-2, WMV, VP6/7/8/9, etc.

The encoded audio 126 and encoded video 128 are further packetized intonetwork packets, as indicated at reference numeral 132, for purposes oftransmission over a network such as the Internet. The network packetencoding process can also employ a data encryption process, therebyproviding enhanced data security. In the illustrated implementation,audio packets 134 and video packets 136 are generated for transport overthe network, as indicated at reference 140.

The gaming system 118 additionally generates haptic feedback data 130,which is also packetized into network packets for network transmission.In the illustrated implementation, haptic feedback packets 138 aregenerated for transport over the network, as further indicated atreference 140.

The foregoing operations of generating the raw video and audio and thehaptic feedback data, encoding the video and audio, and packetizing theencoded audio/video and haptic feedback data for transport are performedon one or more servers which collectively define a cloud gamingservice/system. As indicated at reference 140, the audio, video, andhaptic feedback packets are transported over a network, such as and/orincluding the Internet. As indicated at reference 142, the audio packets134, video packets 136, and haptic feedback packets 138, aredecoded/reassembled by the client device to define encoded audio 146,encoded video 148, and haptic feedback data 150 at the client device. Ifthe data has been encrypted, then the network packets are alsodecrypted. The encoded audio 146 and encoded video 148 are then decodedby the client device, as indicated at reference 144, to generateclient-side raw audio and video data for rendering on a display device152. The haptic feedback data 150 can be processed/communicated toproduce a haptic feedback effect at a controller device 156 or otherinterface device through which haptic effects can be rendered. Oneexample of a haptic effect is a vibration or rumble of the controllerdevice 156.

It will be appreciated that a video game is responsive to user inputs,and thus, a similar procedural flow to that described above fortransmission and processing of user input, but in the reverse directionfrom client device to server, can be performed. As shown, a useroperating controller device 156 may generate input data 158. This inputdata 158 is packetized at the client device for transport over thenetwork to the cloud gaming system. The input data packets 160 areunpacked and reassembled by the cloud gaming server to define input data162 on the server-side. The input data 162 is fed to the gaming system118, which processes the input data 162 to update the game state of thevideo game.

During transport (ref. 140) of the audio packets 134, video packets 136,and haptic feedback packets 138, the transmission of data over thenetwork can be monitored to ensure the cloud game stream quality ofservice. For example, network conditions can be monitored as indicatedby reference 164, including both upstream and downstream networkbandwidth, and the game streaming can be adjusted in response to changesin available bandwidth. That is, the encoding and decoding of networkpackets can be controlled based on present network conditions, asindicated by reference 166.

FIG. 2 conceptually illustrates a system for cloud gaming with localapplication quick start functionality, in accordance withimplementations of the disclosure. The user 226 interacts with a clientdevice 100 that is configured to access a cloud gaming service. The user226 may operate a controller device 156 to generate and provide input tothe client device 100. Furthermore, the client device 100 can beconfigured to render content to a display device 152. It will beappreciated that in some implementations, the display device 152 can bea head-mounted display.

The client device communicates over network 102 to a cloud gaming server104, which provides access to the user's cloud gaming account. The cloudgaming server 104 retrieves user data 204 from a user accounts storage106, the user data 204 being specific for the user 226 in theillustrated embodiment. By way of example, the user data 204 can includevarious cloud gaming related data such as titles 206 which are theavailable game titles for gameplay by the user. These may be game titleswhich the user has purchased, rented, borrowed, been awarded, or towhich the user has otherwise obtained access for gameplay. The user datamay also include game save data 208, trophies 210, statistics 212,social data 214 (e.g. including social graph data), and history data 216(e.g. user access history, gameplay history, etc.).

When the user 226 wishes to play a given cloud video game to which theuser has access permission, the user may indicate selection of the videogame on a graphical user interface (GUI) presented by the client device100 on the display 152. Upon selection of the video game for gameplay, agame request is transmitted from the client device 100 to the cloudgaming server 104. The game request may identify the game title that theuser wishes to play. In response to receiving the game request, thecloud gaming server 104 activates a cloud game machine 118 toinstantiate the requested video game title. That is, the cloud gamemachine 118 is assigned to the requesting client device 100, and beginsexecuting the requested video game title.

Simultaneous with the communication of the game request by the clientdevice 100 to the cloud gaming server 104, the client device 100 alsobegins rendering initial content 234 from a local storage 232. Aninitial content presenter 236 manages the retrieval, rendering, andinteractivity with the initial content 234. The initial content 234 canbe specific to the requested video game, and may include anygame-related content that may be presented to the user preceding thecommencement of interactive gameplay of the video game.

For purposes of the present disclosure, interactive gameplay shall referto interactivity between the user and the executing video game that isdirectly capable of substantively advancing the progress of the userwithin the competitive/narrative context of the video game. Thus,interactive gameplay of the video game does not include other types ofcontent renderings or game-related interactions such as start-upimages/videos, splash/loading screens or videos, legal informationscreens, accessing or configuring game settings (e.g. controllersettings, game difficulty, video settings, audio settings, etc.), gameselection menus (e.g. saved game selection, game level selection, gametype selection (e.g. arcade, campaign), etc.), and/or any other type ofgame-related content or interactive feature that is not directly capableof advancing the user's progress within the competitive or narrativecontext of the video game.

As noted, the initial content 234 of the video game includes contentthat is presented prior to commencement of interactive gameplay. Theinitial content 234 can include such content as logo screens,startup/splash screens (images or animations/videos), legalinformation/disclaimer screens, peripheral device configuration menus,feature setting menus, etc. Since the initial content 234 is locallyaccessible from the local storage 232, the rendering of the initialcontent 234 can occur every quickly, and may be practically immediate orinstantaneous in very fast systems. The user does not have to wait forthe cloud gaming system—to provision/assign a game machine 118 for theclient 100, load the appropriate video game code to the assigned gamemachine 118, begin execution of the video game code, and/or initiatestreaming to the client 100—before content of the video game is renderedto the display device 152. This provides for a local quick start to thevideo game, while the cloud gaming system readies the game machine 118for game streaming. Thus, the user is provided initial content withwhich to engage and enjoy, rather than being forced to wait for thecloud gaming system's operations which could be perceived as a poorcloud gaming experience.

The game machine 118 obtains the requested game title code from gametitles data store 110, and executes the game title code to define theexecuting video game. The raw video/audio output from the game machine118 is provided to a streaming server 220, which encodes the rawvideo/audio to a compressed format for streaming purposes. As notedabove, the encoded audio and video can be transmitted over network 102in accordance with network communication protocols. Streaming logic 238at the client device 224 processes the incoming streaming audio/videofor rendering to the display 152.

It will be appreciated that a transition will occur from presentation ofthe initial content 234 from the local storage 232 to presentation ofthe streamed video game from cloud-based game machine 118 via streamingserver 220. In some implementations, the execution of the video game atthe game machine 118 proceeds until a certain point is reached, at whichpoint the video game awaits a trigger to initiate streaming of the videogame to the client device 100. In some implementations, the trigger toinitiate streaming may be defined from a user input received at theclient device 100. For example, the user may press a button or providesome other input via the controller 156 to initiate streaming.

The transition from local execution/presentation of content to cloudstreaming of content can be configured to provide a smooth userexperience. The execution of the video game by the game machine 118 canbe synchronized to the presentation of initial content at the clientdevice. The game machine 118 may receive status updates from the clientdevice 224 regarding the presentation of the initial content, and theexecution of the video game by the cloud game machine 118 can beadjusted so as to be synchronized with the presentation of the initialcontent 234, and therefore allow for a smooth transition to cloudstreaming. It will be appreciated that in some implementations, thetransition from local content to streaming content occurs automaticallywithout requiring user input, whereas in other implementations, thetransition occurs in response to user input.

The transition from rendering of the initial content to streaming of thevideo game from the cloud may occur at various points in the overallgame presentation. For example, the transition may occur followingrendering of a splash screen (image/animation/video), or followingrendering of a menu or other content requiring an active selection orinput by the user. In the latter concept, the user selection (e.g. of amenu item or option) or input can be communicated to the executing videogame at the game machine 118, which may process the selection/input todetermine the next content to be rendered. In some implementations, thenext content to be rendered will be another splash screen or menu, andthus the transition from local execution of initial content to cloudvideo game streaming occurs in between screens/menus presented prior tothe initiation of interactive gameplay. In some implementations, thecloud game machine 118 can receive a status update regarding which ofseveral screens is being presented at the client device 224, and thegame machine 118 can be directed to execute and render the next screen,which will be streamed to the client device 224.

In some implementations, the transition occurs during the presentationof a single content screen. For example, the initial content 234 mightinclude a plurality of screens which are presented in series. During thelocal presentation of the screens, cloud game machine 118 can receivestatus updates indicating which screens are being presented, and thecloud game machine 118 can be directed to execute and render the samescreen as that which is currently being presented by the client device224. The transition to streaming can thus occur during the presentationof the current screen, and may appear seamless to the user. In someimplementations, the image/video portion of the screen content istransitioned to streaming first, whereas the audio is not transitioneduntil the presentation of the next screen. In some implementations,wherein the audio is defined by looped playback of an audio clip, thetransition (of both the video and audio, or the audio only) may occurwhen the audio playback reaches the end of the clip. Such aconfiguration can avoid audible breaks in the audio presentation.

In some implementations, the trigger to initiate streaming of the videogame also triggers initiation of interactive gameplay of the video game.For example, the initiation content can include all content of the videogame that is to be presented to the user prior to initiating actualinteractive gameplay. Then, at the point of initiating interactivegameplay, the client device 100 transitions from presenting locallystored content to presenting cloud-based streaming content. Further, itwill be appreciated that user interactions with the initial content,such as user selections or other user inputs, can be communicated to theexecuting video game. In this manner, interactions with locally storedcontent can be used to drive the execution of the cloud-based videogame. For example, the user may indicate a menu selection and this willbe communicated to the executing video game on the game machine 118. Thepresentation of the menu will be from the local storage 232; however,following the user selection from the menu, the user selection may becommunicated to the game machine 118 (e.g. via cloud gaming server 104)and the game machine 118 may process the user selection. The clientdevice 100 may also transition to streaming the result of the userselection (e.g. to initiate interactive gameplay of the video game) fromthe game machine 118 via streaming server 220.

As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the executing videogame may define a game engine which receives input, and processes theinput to update the game state of the video game. In someimplementations, the game engine of the video game is initialized at thegame machine 118, while the initial content 234 is being presented atthe client device. The game engine may be initialized and then enteredinto a paused state, as the game machine awaits a trigger to continueexecution of the game engine. Upon receipt of the trigger, which can bedefined from a user input, the paused state is exited and the resultingexecution of the game engine provides for the initiation of interactivegameplay of the video game.

In some implementations, the client device 224 can be configured tocommunicate status updates to the cloud gaming system regarding thepresentation of the initial content 234. Such status updates can includeinformation identifying a current state of presentation of the initialcontent, as well as user inputs/selections/navigation. In response tosuch status updates, the execution of the video game by the game machine118 can be directed to perform any of various options within the contextof the video game. The transition between rendering of initial content234 by the client device 224 to streaming of the video game from thestreaming server 220 can thus be managed and synchronized to provide asmooth user experience.

In some implementations, the initialization of the game engine at thegame machine can be configured to automatically load the user's lastsaved game data, as in many cases, a user will typically wish tocontinue gameplay from their last saved location. It will be appreciatedthat this automatic loading of the user's last saved game data can occurpreemptively, before the user even indicates (e.g. throughnavigation/selection of game menus/options) that he/she wishes tocontinue gameplay of their last saved game. This is made possiblethrough the division of processing wherein the client device processesand renders initial content while the cloud-based game machineinitializes the game engine for eventual interactive gameplay. Thepresently described configuration thus provides an advantage over thegaming experience of even conventional console games, as the user is notrequired to wait for their local device to sequentially load the initialcontent and then load their saved game, for they are respectivelyhandled in parallel by each of the local client device 100 and thecloud-based game machine 118.

In some implementations, the cloud gaming server 104 can be configuredto determine whether or not to preemptively load the last saved game fora given video game based on the user's gameplay history. For example, insome implementations, the system may be configured to automatically loadthe user's last saved game if during the user's last gameplay session ofthe video game, the user loaded the previously last saved game. In arelated implementation, the system may be configured to automaticallyload the user's last saved game if less than a threshold amount of timehas elapsed since the last gameplay session, and during the user's lastgameplay session of the video game, the user loaded the previously lastsaved game. In other implementations, the system may be configured todetermine whether or not to automatically load the user's last savedgame based on various factors such as social network activity, time ofday, length of time since last gameplay, relative amount of gameplay ofsaved games versus non-saved games (e.g. arcade, multi-player) of thevideo game, etc.

In the illustrated implementation, during interactive gameplay the gamemachine 118 executes the game engine to generate full uncompressedstreams of video and audio data. The streaming server 220 receives thefull video and audio data streams, and processes them for transmissionover the network 102 to the client device 100. The processing may entailencoding the video and audio data into a compressed format, encryptingthe compressed data, and packetizing the data in accordance with networkprotocols for transmission. The client device 100 receives thetransmitted data, reassembles the network packets, and decrypts anddecodes the compressed video/audio data for rendering to a display/HMD152 and an audio device (which may be part of the display 152).

In the above-described implementation, the streaming server streams acompressed version of the full video and audio streams to the clientdevice 100. In some implementations, as discussed in further detailbelow, the streaming server 220 may be configured to stream versions ofthe full video and audio streams that are also optimized in other ways.As will be discussed, the streamed video and audio may be configured tohave certain content portions/assets left out, which are later suppliedat the client 100, so that less bandwidth is required for game streamingor so that the remainder of the streamed video and audio may be streamedat higher fidelity (e.g. higher frame-rate or sample rate, higherresolution, etc.).

FIG. 3 illustrates a system for providing cache-optimized cloud gaming,in accordance with implementations of the disclosure. Broadly speaking,the illustrated system is configured so that image or audio portions ofthe video game are stored at the client device, and combined with thestreamed video or audio at the client device just prior to rendering onthe display, thereby reducing the bandwidth required to stream the videogame. The portions to be stored at the client device can be transferredto the device during time periods when there is available bandwidth, asdetermined from monitoring bandwidth utilization for game streamingand/or network conditions.

In the illustrated implementation, the gaming machine 118 executes acache optimized game build 300 of a video game (Title A) that is storedin game titles storage 110. The cache optimized game build 300 is aspecialized version of the video game title that is configured toprovide for the cache-optimized game streaming functionality hereindescribed. In particular, the cache optimized game build 300 isconfigurable to output video and audio data streams that exclude certainvisual or audio components of the video game, which thereby reduces thedata size of the video and audio data streams.

The execution of the game build 300 by the game machine 118 defines agame engine 302, that receives and processes inputs to update a gamestate, and outputs image frame data 350 and audio data 352. The gameengine 302 can be configured to optionally exclude certain visual oraudio content/assets from the image frame data 350 or audio data 352that it outputs. For an excluded visual asset, the game engine 302 maygenerate a visual asset identifier that identifies the excluded visualasset and may further define parameters which control its presentation,such as its placement within the image frame data (defining its temporallocation and spatial location), size, orientation, color(s),brightness/contrast, other visual properties, etc. For an excluded audioasset, the game engine 302 may generate an audio asset identifier thatidentifies the excluded audio asset and may further define parameterswhich control its presentation, such as volume, balance/faderparameters, placement, equalization parameters, etc. The visual/audioasset identifiers may accompany or be included as part of the imageframe data 350 or audio data 352, and serve to indicate what visual oraudio asset is to be assembled with the image/audio streams whenprocessed at the client device 100.

A streaming server 220 receives the raw image frame data 350 and audiodata 352 which are generated by the game machine 118. An encoder 314encodes the image frame data 350 and the audio data 352 in compressedvideo/audio formats. An encryption module 316 encrypts the compressedvideo/audio for transmission over the network 102. The streaming server220 is also configured to transmit cache data 306 for the video gamefrom a game cache data storage 304 to the client device 100. The cachedata 306 can include visual content/assets 308 and/or audiocontent/assets 310, which are cacheable content/assets defined for thevideo game which can be stored at the client device for later assemblywith video/audio streams. Thus, the streaming server 220 sends a mixeddata stream 354 that can include the compressed video/audio as well asclient cacheable visual and/or audio content/assets. It will beappreciated that the encryption module 316 can also encrypt thevisual/audio assets for inclusion in the mixed data stream 354 fortransmission over the network 102.

The particular timing of the inclusion of visual/audio assets in themixed data stream 354 can be determined based on current bandwidth usageand network conditions. In some implementations, the streaming server220 is configured to monitor current bandwidth usage by the streaming ofthe mixed data stream 354 and determine when available bandwidth existsfor streaming the visual/audio assets in addition to the compressedvideo/audio streams. The streaming server 220 may determine initialnetwork conditions and monitor network conditions on an ongoing basisduring game streaming, and the network conditions may be referenced inconjunction with the current bandwidth usage to determine the availablebandwidth that exists at any moment.

It will be appreciated that the visual/audio content/assets to be cachedare streamed to the client device in advance of their application andrendering by the client device. During periods of relatively lowbandwidth utilization, the unused bandwidth can be utilized to streamthe visual/audio assets to the client device. The specific visual/audioassets which have been stored at the client device can be tracked, andthe game engine can therefore be configured to exclude thosevisual/audio assets (which are already cached at the client) from beingincluded in the raw image frame data or audio data generated by the gameengine.

The mixed data stream 354 is received at the client device 100 andprocessed by a data stream handler 328. In some implementations, thedata stream handler 328 performs a demultiplexing function on the mixeddata stream 354 to parse the compressed video, compressed audio, andvisual/audio asset streams from the mixed data stream. When visual/audioassets are transmitted in the mixed data stream 354, then the cachemanager 326 stores the visual/audio assets to a client cache storage318, and more specifically as visual content data 322 and/or audiocontent data 324 which define part of the cache data 320 for the videogame.

The data stream handler 328 also produces (e.g. demultiplexes and/ordecompresses) video and audio streams from the mixed data stream 354.The video and audio streams are passed to an image stream assembler 326or an audio stream assembler 334, respectively. The image streamassembler 326 is configured to determine which portions of image framedata have been excluded in the video stream, and fill in these portionswith visual content/assets retrieved from the client cache data 320. Insome implementations, the aforementioned visual asset identifier istransmitted along with or as part of the mixed data stream, and isprocessed to identify the visual assets that are to be inserted/combinedinto the video stream and the parameters regarding their placement andpossibly other visual properties. In some implementations, a marker isencoded in the video stream itself, the marker identifying the visualasset to be added and its location within the video stream, both spatialand temporal.

The image stream assembler 326 outputs the fully assembled video streamto a video signal generator 332. The video signal generator 332processes the fully assembled video stream to generate the appropriatevideo signal in the correct format for rendering by the display device152. Though the display device 152 is shown as a separate component inthe illustrated system, in some implementations, the display device 152is incorporated as part of the client device 100.

In a similar manner to the image stream assembler 326, the audio streamassembler 334 is configured to determine which portions of audio datahave been excluded in the audio stream, and fill in these portions withaudio content/assets retrieved from the client cache data 320. In someimplementations, the aforementioned audio asset identifier istransmitted along with or as part of the mixed data stream, and isprocessed to identify the audio assets that are to be inserted/combinedinto the audio stream and the parameters regarding their placement andpossibly other audio properties. In some implementations, a marker isencoded in the audio stream itself, the marker identifying the audioasset to be added and its location within the audio stream.

The audio stream assembler 334 outputs the fully assembled audio streamto an audio signal generator 336. The audio signal generator 336processes the fully assembled audio stream to generate the appropriateaudio signal in the correct format for rendering by the audio device340. Though the audio device 340 is shown as a separate component in theillustrated system, in some implementations, the audio device 340 isincorporated as part of the client device 100. Furthermore, in someimplementations, the audio device 340 is included as part of the displaydevice 152.

FIG. 4 conceptually illustrates the flow of data to provide for localcache-optimized cloud video game streaming from a cloud gaming service400, in accordance with implementations of the disclosure. The executingvideo game 302 is shown, which defines a game state 402 that defines themoment-to-moment state of variables for the video game. It will beappreciated that executing video game 302 continually updates the gamestate 402, based on the current state and based on input data 418received from the client device 100.

The video game 302, as processed through the cloud gaming service 400,produces a mixed data stream 354. The mixed data stream 354 includesimage data 404, audio data 406, and cache data 408. In the illustratedimplementation, the image data 404 defines an exemplary image frame 410.A portion 412 of the image frame 410 is not fully defined, that is, theportion 412 is to be supplied by the client device 100, rather thanbeing fully defined/included in the image frame 410, so as to reduce theamount of bandwidth required for streaming the image frame.

Cache data 408 includes data defining assets which are to be insertedinto image frames of the image data 404, such as image frame 410. Thecache data 408 is received by the client device 100, parsed from themixed data stream 354, and stored to a client cache storage 318, as partof image cache data 322. In the illustrated implementation, a visualasset 414, which was previously transmitted to the client device 100, isretrieved from the image cache data 322, and inserted into the imageframe 410 to define the portion 412 that was previously not fullydefined. The resulting completed image frame forms part of the completeimage stream 132 for presentation on a display device.

It will be appreciated that visual assets which are transmitted to andcached at the client device can be any type of image, item, object, orother visual property that may be separately provided apart from thevideo stream generated by the cloud video game, and later inserted intoimage frames of the video stream at the client device to providecompleted image frames for rendering to a display. The visual assets caninclude static items which are static in the sense that theirappearance, when presented in the video stream, is not subject toalteration based on the current game state. These may include, forexample, items such as indicators, emblems, trophies, badges, and othertypes of visual items whose appearance is not dynamically determinedbased on the current game state. For example, there may be variousvisual indicators that indicate to the user a current status of acharacter or of the gameplay, such as powers, items possessed, otherusers' characters, etc. As another example, a video game in which theuser assumes the role of piloting a vehicle may include a view of acockpit of the vehicle. Some of the visual items in the cockpit may bestatic, and may not change while the cockpit is being shown in theuser's game view, even as the interactive gameplay of the video gameproceeds. Static visual assets can be inserted into the video stream atthe client device without alteration.

However, it will be appreciated that in some implementations, the visualassets can include dynamic visual assets whose appearance is, at leastin part, determined based on game state conditions. For example, dynamicvisual assets may be altered in color, size, orientation, transparency,or any other visual property, by the client device based on the currentgame state, and inserted into the video stream by the client deviceprior to rendering to the display. To accomplish this, alteration datacan be transmitted with the video stream to indicate the specificalterations which are to be performed on the visual asset prior toinsertion in the video stream.

In a similar manner to the above discussion, audio data 406 delivered inthe mixed data stream 354 can be supplemented with an audio asset fromaudio cache data 324 to define a completed audio stream 130 forpresentation through an audio device. The audio assets can include anyof various types of audio or sounds which are utilized by the videogame, including without limitation, sound effects, background music,prerecorded audio clips, etc. It will be appreciated that the particularaudio which is generated/inserted at the client device versus that whichis generated by the cloud gaming machine may vary in differentimplementations. For example, in some implementations, backgroundmusic/audio is generated and added to the audio stream at the clientdevice, while other sound effects that are triggered or activated by theuser's real-time interactive gameplay are generated by the cloud gamingmachine. In one particular implementation, all sound is generated at theclient device, based on data generated by the cloud gaming machine andreceived by the client device in the mixed data stream that identifiesthe sounds to be produced, the timing of such sounds, and any additionalaudio-related parameters, e.g. volume, equalization,directionality/origin, etc.

Visual and audio assets can be predictively or preemptively transmittedto the client device, based on the current game state which may beindicative of an expected future game state. This can be useful formitigating the abrupt increases in bandwidth utilization that may occurat scene changes, when for example, the entire view of the video gamescene may change. For example, if a player-controlled character is in avicinity of or moving towards a physical or temporal location where ascene change may occur, then visual/audio assets may be transmitted tothe client device to be utilized at the scene change. For example, if aplayer directs his character towards a door, and opening or passingthrough the door results in a scene change, then prior to the opening ofthe door, visual/audio assets may be transmitted to the client inanticipation of being utilized during the scene change. In anotherexample, when the user is nearing completion of a level or scene of thevideo game, then visual/audio assets may be transmitted to the clientdevice prior to the completion of the level/scene, for use during thestreaming of the next level/scene. In some implementations, when theuser's gameplay completion of a scene/level passes a predefinedthreshold, then visual/audio assets are transmitted to the client deviceas available bandwidth allows.

An input processing module 416 at the client device 100 is configured toprocess input from a controller device or other input device, andtransmit input data 418 to the executing video game 302. The video game302 applies the input data 418 to update its game state 402. It will beappreciated that based on this game state, a predicted future game statecan be determined, and the transmission of visual/audio assets to theclient device can be determined based on the predicted future gamestate.

FIG. 5 illustrates a method for providing local application quick startfunctionality, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. Atmethod operation 500, a request to initiate a video game is received ata client device that is in communication with a cloud gaming service. Atmethod operation 502, it is determined whether this is the firstinstance of requesting the game, such as an initial purchase of thegame, or if an update is required. If so, then at method operation 504,initial content for the video game is downloaded and installed and/orupdated. If no update or additional download is required, or followingsuch download and installation/update, then at method operation 506, theinitial content of the video game is rendered from the client device'slocal storage. At method operation 508, user input and/or selection inresponse to the rendered initial content is processed at the clientdevice, and at method operation 510, the state of rendering of theinitial content is updated, thus returning to method operation 506.

Meanwhile, the request to access the video game is communicated to thecloud gaming service, which authenticates the user's game ownershipand/or purchase of the requested video game. At method operation 518, acloud gaming machine is initialized to execute the requested video gameand assigned to the user's cloud gaming session. At method operation520, the cloud gaming machine executes the video game. At methodoperation 522, user input/selection is processed by the executing videogame to update the state of the executing video game. Theinput/selection can be defined from user interaction with the initialcontent.

At method operation 512, the client device requests and/or awaits forstreaming of the video game to begin. At method operation 524, the cloudgaming service generates and transmits the streaming video/audio of thevideo game, and at method operation 514, the streaming video/audio isreceived by the client device and rendered for user interactivity.

FIG. 6 illustrates a method for providing local application quick startfunctionality in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. Atmethod operation 600, the user logs in to the cloud gaming service via aclient device, which effects authentication of the user by a cloudgaming server at method operation 612. At method operation 602, the userstarts a video game at the client device, and in response, at methodoperation 604, initial content of the video game is loaded from a localstorage of the client device and rendered to a display.

Meanwhile, at method operation 614, in response to the user request tostart the video game, a game machine is provisioned/assigned to theuser's client device. At method operation 616, the game machine isloaded with the requested video game title. At method operation 618,either anticipatorily or in response to a user request, saved game datafrom the user's account is accessed and loaded.

At method operation 606, a request is received from the user of theclient device to start interactive gameplay. At method operation 620,interactive gameplay is executed by the cloud game machine. At methodoperation 622, the cloud gaming service generates a video stream that istransmitted to the client device. At method operation 608, the videostream is rendered by the client device. At method operation 610,interactive input is received by the client device and transmitted tothe executing video game at the cloud game machine. The executing videogame processes the interactive input to update its game state, and basedon the updated game state, the video stream is generated as indicated atreference 622.

FIG. 7 is a graph depicting data bandwidth versus time, comparingbandwidth utilization for an existing conventional game streaming setupto one that employs a client cache, in accordance with implementationsof the disclosure. The curve 700 illustrates the maximum available databandwidth for game streaming. The curve 702 illustrates bandwidthutilization for an existing conventional game streaming setup. The curve704 illustrates bandwidth utilization for a game streaming setupincorporating client cacheable content, as described elsewhere herein.At time T₀ the bandwidth utilization level 706 shown for curve 702 iswithin the available bandwidth, and so no degradation in streamingquality will be experienced by the user. However, at time T₂, a scenetransition or other event occurs which causes the bandwidth utilizationto dramatically increase. The bandwidth utilization rises to a peaklevel 708 that exceeds the maximum available bandwidth 700, therebypossibly resulting in degradation of the video/audio streaming quality.At time T₃, the bandwidth utilization returns to a level 710 that iswithin the maximum available bandwidth.

The curve 704 illustrates bandwidth utilization for a cloud gaming setupemploying client caching in accordance with implementations of thedisclosure. At time T₀ to time T₁, the bandwidth utilization is at alevel 712, which may be somewhat below the corresponding level 706 ofthe conventional setup, due to the use of cacheable content at theclient to provide portions of the video/audio streams. At time T1, it isdetermined that the user's gameplay is nearing a scene transition orother event that will require greater bandwidth utilization. Therefore,cacheable content to be used for the scene transition is streamed to theclient device prior to the occurrence of the scene transition, resultingin an increase in bandwidth utilization to a level 714. It will beappreciated that the level 714 is above the level 716 of bandwidthutilization for the conventional system, but still within the availablebandwidth 700.

At time T2, the scene transition occurs, and the bandwidth utilizationmay rise to a level 718, yet unlike the conventional system, the level718 for the system employing client caching is still within theavailable bandwidth 700 so that no degradation in streaming qualityoccurs. At time T3, the scene transition is complete and the bandwidthutilization drops to a level 720, which may be lower than then level 710due to the continued application of client cached content to provideportions of the video/audio streams.

In some embodiments, the client can be a general purpose computer, aspecial purpose computer, a portable gaming console, a personalcomputer, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a mobile computingdevice, a portable gaming device, a cellular phone, a set-top box, astreaming media interface/device, a smart television or networkeddisplay, or any other computing device capable of being configured tofulfill the functionality of a client as defined herein. In oneembodiment, a cloud gaming server is configured to detect the type ofclient device which is being utilized by the user, and provide acloud-gaming experience appropriate to the user's client device. Forexample, image settings, audio settings and other types of settings maybe optimized for the user's client device.

FIG. 8 illustrates an embodiment of an Information Service Providerarchitecture. Information Service Providers (ISP) 1070 delivers amultitude of information services to users 1082 geographically dispersedand connected via network 1086. An ISP can deliver just one type ofservice, such as stock price updates, or a variety of services such asbroadcast media, news, sports, gaming, etc. Additionally, the servicesoffered by each ISP are dynamic, that is, services can be added or takenaway at any point in time. Thus, the ISP providing a particular type ofservice to a particular individual can change over time. For example, auser may be served by an ISP in near proximity to the user while theuser is in her home town, and the user may be served by a different ISPwhen the user travels to a different city. The home-town ISP willtransfer the required information and data to the new ISP, such that theuser information “follows” the user to the new city making the datacloser to the user and easier to access. In another embodiment, amaster-server relationship may be established between a master ISP,which manages the information for the user, and a server ISP thatinterfaces directly with the user under control from the master ISP. Inanother embodiment, the data is transferred from one ISP to another ISPas the client moves around the world to make the ISP in better positionto service the user be the one that delivers these services.

ISP 1070 includes Application Service Provider (ASP) 1072, whichprovides computer-based services to customers over a network. Softwareoffered using an ASP model is also sometimes called on-demand softwareor software as a service (SaaS). A simple form of providing access to aparticular application program (such as customer relationshipmanagement) is by using a standard protocol such as HTTP. Theapplication software resides on the vendor's system and is accessed byusers through a web browser using HTML, by special purpose clientsoftware provided by the vendor, or other remote interface such as athin client.

Services delivered over a wide geographical area often use cloudcomputing. Cloud computing is a style of computing in which dynamicallyscalable and often virtualized resources are provided as a service overthe Internet. Users do not need to be an expert in the technologyinfrastructure in the “cloud” that supports them. Cloud computing can bedivided into different services, such as Infrastructure as a Service(IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS).Cloud computing services often provide common business applicationsonline that are accessed from a web browser, while the software and dataare stored on the servers. The term cloud is used as a metaphor for theInternet (e.g., using servers, storage and logic), based on how theInternet is depicted in computer network diagrams and is an abstractionfor the complex infrastructure it conceals.

Further, ISP 1070 includes a Game Processing Server (GPS) 1074 which isused by game clients to play single and multiplayer video games. Mostvideo games played over the Internet operate via a connection to a gameserver. Typically, games use a dedicated server application thatcollects data from players and distributes it to other players. This ismore efficient and effective than a peer-to-peer arrangement, but itrequires a separate server to host the server application. In anotherembodiment, the GPS establishes communication between the players andtheir respective game-playing devices exchange information withoutrelying on the centralized GPS.

Dedicated GPSs are servers which run independently of the client. Suchservers are usually run on dedicated hardware located in data centers,providing more bandwidth and dedicated processing power. Dedicatedservers are the preferred method of hosting game servers for mostPC-based multiplayer games. Massively multiplayer online games run ondedicated servers usually hosted by the software company that owns thegame title, allowing them to control and update content.

Broadcast Processing Server (BPS) 1076 distributes audio or videosignals to an audience. Broadcasting to a very narrow range of audienceis sometimes called narrowcasting. The final leg of broadcastdistribution is how the signal gets to the listener or viewer, and itmay come over the air as with a radio station or TV station to anantenna and receiver, or may come through cable TV or cable radio (or“wireless cable”) via the station or directly from a network. TheInternet may also bring either radio or TV to the recipient, especiallywith multicasting allowing the signal and bandwidth to be shared.Historically, broadcasts have been delimited by a geographic region,such as national broadcasts or regional broadcast. However, with theproliferation of fast internet, broadcasts are not defined bygeographies as the content can reach almost any country in the world.

Storage Service Provider (SSP) 1078 provides computer storage space andrelated management services. SSPs also offer periodic backup andarchiving. By offering storage as a service, users can order morestorage as required. Another major advantage is that SSPs include backupservices and users will not lose all their data if their computers' harddrives fail. Further, a plurality of SSPs can have total or partialcopies of the user data, allowing users to access data in an efficientway independently of where the user is located or the device being usedto access the data. For example, a user can access personal files in thehome computer, as well as in a mobile phone while the user is on themove.

Communications Provider 1080 provides connectivity to the users. Onekind of Communications Provider is an Internet Service Provider (ISP)which offers access to the Internet. The ISP connects its customersusing a data transmission technology appropriate for delivering InternetProtocol datagrams, such as dial-up, DSL, cable modem, fiber, wirelessor dedicated high-speed interconnects. The Communications Provider canalso provide messaging services, such as e-mail, instant messaging, andSMS texting. Another type of Communications Provider is the NetworkService provider (NSP) which sells bandwidth or network access byproviding direct backbone access to the Internet. Network serviceproviders may consist of telecommunications companies, data carriers,wireless communications providers, Internet service providers, cabletelevision operators offering high-speed Internet access, etc.

Data Exchange 1088 interconnects the several modules inside ISP 1070 andconnects these modules to users 1082 via network 1086. Data Exchange1088 can cover a small area where all the modules of ISP 1070 are inclose proximity, or can cover a large geographic area when the differentmodules are geographically dispersed. For example, Data Exchange 1088can include a fast Gigabit Ethernet (or faster) within a cabinet of adata center, or an intercontinental virtual area network (VLAN).

Users 1082 access the remote services with client device 1084, whichincludes at least a CPU, a memory, a display and I/O. The client devicecan be a PC, a mobile phone, a netbook, tablet, gaming system, a PDA,etc. In one embodiment, ISP 1070 recognizes the type of device used bythe client and adjusts the communication method employed. In othercases, client devices use a standard communications method, such ashtml, to access ISP 1070.

Embodiments of the present invention may be practiced with variouscomputer system configurations including hand-held devices,microprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumerelectronics, minicomputers, mainframe computers and the like. Theinvention can also be practiced in distributed computing environmentswhere tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linkedthrough a wire-based or wireless network.

With the above embodiments in mind, it should be understood that theinvention can employ various computer-implemented operations involvingdata stored in computer systems. These operations are those requiringphysical manipulation of physical quantities. Any of the operationsdescribed herein that form part of the invention are useful machineoperations. The invention also relates to a device or an apparatus forperforming these operations. The apparatus can be specially constructedfor the required purpose, or the apparatus can be a general-purposecomputer selectively activated or configured by a computer programstored in the computer. In particular, various general-purpose machinescan be used with computer programs written in accordance with theteachings herein, or it may be more convenient to construct a morespecialized apparatus to perform the required operations.

The invention can also be embodied as computer readable code on acomputer readable medium. Alternately, the computer readable code may bedownloaded from a server using the data exchange interconnects describedabove. The computer readable medium is any data storage device that canstore data, which can be thereafter be read by a computer system.Examples of the computer readable medium include hard drives, networkattached storage (NAS), read-only memory, random-access memory, CD-ROMs,CD-Rs, CD-RWs, magnetic tapes and other optical and non-optical datastorage devices. The computer readable medium can include computerreadable tangible medium distributed over a network-coupled computersystem so that the computer readable code is stored and executed in adistributed fashion.

Although the method operations were described in a specific order, itshould be understood that other housekeeping operations may be performedin between operations, or operations may be adjusted so that they occurat slightly different times, or may be distributed in a system whichallows the occurrence of the processing operations at various intervalsassociated with the processing, as long as the processing of the overlayoperations are performed in the desired way.

Although the foregoing invention has been described in some detail forpurposes of clarity of understanding, it will be apparent that certainchanges and modifications can be practiced within the scope of theappended claims. Accordingly, the present embodiments are to beconsidered as illustrative and not restrictive, and the invention is notto be limited to the details given herein, but may be modified withinthe scope and equivalents of the described embodiments.

FIG. 9 schematically illustrates the overall system architecture of agaming console, such as Sony® Playstation 3® entertainment device, thatmay be compatible with controllers for implementing an avatar controlsystem in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. Asystem unit 1400 is provided, with various peripheral devicesconnectable to the system unit 1400. The system unit 1400 is similar tothe computing server 402-a of FIG. 2. The system unit 1400 comprises: aCell processor 1428; a Rambus® dynamic random access memory (XDRAM) unit1426; a Reality Synthesizer graphics unit 1430 with a dedicated videorandom access memory (VRAM) unit 1432; and an I/O bridge 1434. Thesystem unit 1400 also comprises a Blu Ray® Disk BD-ROM® optical diskreader 1440 for reading from a disk 1440 a and a removable slot-in harddisk drive (HDD) 1436, accessible through the I/O bridge 1434.Optionally the system unit 1400 also comprises a memory card reader 1438for reading compact flash memory cards, Memory Stick® memory cards andthe like, which is similarly accessible through the I/O bridge 1434.

The I/O bridge 1434 also connects to six Universal Serial Bus (USB) 2.0ports 1424; a gigabit Ethernet port 1422; an IEEE 802.11b/g wirelessnetwork (Wi-Fi) port 1420; and a Bluetooth® wireless link port 1418capable of supporting of up to seven Bluetooth connections.

In operation the I/O bridge 1434 handles all wireless, USB and Ethernetdata, including data from one or more game controllers 1402. For examplewhen a user is playing a game, the I/O bridge 1434 receives data fromthe game controller 1402 via a Bluetooth link and directs it to the Cellprocessor 1428, which updates the current state of the game accordingly.

The wireless, USB and Ethernet ports also provide connectivity for otherperipheral devices in addition to game controllers 1402, such as: aremote control 1404; a keyboard 1406; a mouse 1408; a portableentertainment device 1410 such as a Sony Playstation Portable®entertainment device; a video camera such as an EyeToy® video camera1412; and a microphone headset 1414. Such peripheral devices maytherefore in principle be connected to the system unit 1400 wirelessly;for example the portable entertainment device 1410 may communicate via aWi-Fi ad-hoc connection, whilst the microphone headset 1414 maycommunicate via a Bluetooth link.

The provision of these interfaces means that the Playstation 3 device isalso potentially compatible with other peripheral devices such asdigital video recorders (DVRs), set-top boxes, digital cameras, portablemedia players, Voice over IP telephones, mobile telephones, printers andscanners.

In addition, a legacy memory card reader 1416 may be connected to thesystem unit via a USB port 1424, enabling the reading of memory cards1448 of the kind used by the Playstation® or Playstation 2® devices.

In the present embodiment, the game controller 1402 is operable tocommunicate wirelessly with the system unit 1400 via the Bluetooth link.However, the game controller 1402 can instead be connected to a USBport, thereby also providing power by which to charge the battery of thegame controller 1402. In addition to one or more analog joysticks andconventional control buttons, the game controller is sensitive to motionin six degrees of freedom, corresponding to translation and rotation ineach axis. Consequently gestures and movements by the user of the gamecontroller may be translated as inputs to a game in addition to orinstead of conventional button or joystick commands. Optionally, otherwirelessly enabled peripheral devices such as the Playstation™ Portabledevice may be used as a controller. In the case of the Playstation™Portable device, additional game or control information (for example,control instructions or number of lives) may be provided on the screenof the device. Other alternative or supplementary control devices mayalso be used, such as a dance mat (not shown), a light gun (not shown),a steering wheel and pedals (not shown) or bespoke controllers, such asa single or several large buttons for a rapid-response quiz game (alsonot shown).

The remote control 1404 is also operable to communicate wirelessly withthe system unit 1400 via a Bluetooth link. The remote control 1404comprises controls suitable for the operation of the Blu Ray™ DiskBD-ROM reader 1440 and for the navigation of disk content.

The Blu Ray™ Disk BD-ROM reader 1440 is operable to read CD-ROMscompatible with the Playstation and PlayStation 2 devices, in additionto conventional pre-recorded and recordable CDs, and so-called SuperAudio CDs. The reader 1440 is also operable to read DVD-ROMs compatiblewith the Playstation 2 and PlayStation 3 devices, in addition toconventional pre-recorded and recordable DVDs. The reader 1440 isfurther operable to read BD-ROMs compatible with the Playstation 3device, as well as conventional pre-recorded and recordable Blu-RayDisks.

The system unit 1400 is operable to supply audio and video, eithergenerated or decoded by the Playstation 3 device via the RealitySynthesizer graphics unit 1430, through audio and video connectors to adisplay and sound output device 1442 such as a monitor or television sethaving a display 1444 and one or more loudspeakers 1446. The audioconnectors 1450 may include conventional analogue and digital outputswhilst the video connectors 1452 may variously include component video,S-video, composite video and one or more High Definition MultimediaInterface (HDMI) outputs. Consequently, video output may be in formatssuch as PAL or NTSC, or in 720p, 1080i or 1080p high definition.

Audio processing (generation, decoding and so on) is performed by theCell processor 1428. The Playstation 3 device's operating systemsupports Dolby® 5.1 surround sound, Dolby® Theatre Surround (DTS), andthe decoding of 7.1 surround sound from Blu-Ray® disks.

In the present embodiment, the video camera 1412 comprises a singlecharge coupled device (CCD), an LED indicator, and hardware-basedreal-time data compression and encoding apparatus so that compressedvideo data may be transmitted in an appropriate format such as anintra-image based MPEG (motion picture expert group) standard fordecoding by the system unit 1400. The camera LED indicator is arrangedto illuminate in response to appropriate control data from the systemunit 1400, for example to signify adverse lighting conditions.Embodiments of the video camera 1412 may variously connect to the systemunit 1400 via a USB, Bluetooth or Wi-Fi communication port. Embodimentsof the video camera may include one or more associated microphones andalso be capable of transmitting audio data. In embodiments of the videocamera, the CCD may have a resolution suitable for high-definition videocapture. In use, images captured by the video camera may for example beincorporated within a game or interpreted as game control inputs.

In general, in order for successful data communication to occur with aperipheral device such as a video camera or remote control via one ofthe communication ports of the system unit 1400, an appropriate piece ofsoftware such as a device driver should be provided. Device drivertechnology is well-known and will not be described in detail here,except to say that the skilled man will be aware that a device driver orsimilar software interface may be required in the present embodimentdescribed.

Referring now to FIG. 10 the Cell processor 1428 has an architecturecomprising four basic components: external input and output structurescomprising a memory controller 1560 and a dual bus interface controller1570A,B; a main processor referred to as the Power Processing Element1550; eight co-processors referred to as Synergistic Processing Elements(SPEs) 1510A-H; and a circular data bus connecting the above componentsreferred to as the Element Interconnect Bus 1580. The total floatingpoint performance of the Cell processor is 218 GFLOPS, compared with the6.2 GFLOPs of the Playstation 2 device's Emotion Engine.

The Power Processing Element (PPE) 1550 is based upon a two-waysimultaneous multithreading Power 1470 compliant PowerPC core (PPU) 1555running with an internal clock of 3.2 GHz. It comprises a 512 kB level 2(L2) cache and a 32 kB level 1 (L1) cache. The PPE 1550 is capable ofeight single position operations per clock cycle, translating to 25.6GFLOPs at 3.2 GHz. The primary role of the PPE 1550 is to act as acontroller for the Synergistic Processing Elements 1510A-H, which handlemost of the computational workload. In operation the PPE 1550 maintainsa job queue, scheduling jobs for the Synergistic Processing Elements1510A-H and monitoring their progress. Consequently each SynergisticProcessing Element 1510A-H runs a kernel whose role is to fetch a job,execute it and synchronized with the PPE 1550.

Each Synergistic Processing Element (SPE) 1510A-H comprises a respectiveSynergistic Processing Unit (SPU) 1520A-H, and a respective Memory FlowController (MFC) 1540A-H comprising in turn a respective Dynamic MemoryAccess Controller (DMAC) 1542A-H, a respective Memory Management Unit(MMU) 1544A-H and a bus interface (not shown). Each SPU 1520A-H is aRISC processor clocked at 3.2 GHz and comprising 256 kB local RAM1530A-H, expandable in principle to 4 GB. Each SPE gives a theoretical25.6 GFLOPS of single precision performance. An SPU can operate on 4single precision floating point members, 4 32-bit numbers, 8 16-bitintegers, or 16 8-bit integers in a single clock cycle. In the sameclock cycle it can also perform a memory operation. The SPU 1520A-H doesnot directly access the system memory XDRAM 1426; the 64-bit addressesformed by the SPU 1520A-H are passed to the MFC 1540A-H which instructsits DMA controller 1542A-H to access memory via the Element InterconnectBus 1580 and the memory controller 1560.

The Element Interconnect Bus (EIB) 1580 is a logically circularcommunication bus internal to the Cell processor 1428 which connects theabove processor elements, namely the PPE 1550, the memory controller1560, the dual bus interface 1570A,B and the 8 SPEs 1510A-H, totaling 12participants. Participants can simultaneously read and write to the busat a rate of 8 bytes per clock cycle. As noted previously, each SPE1510A-H comprises a DMAC 1542A-H for scheduling longer read or writesequences. The EIB comprises four channels, two each in clockwise andanti-clockwise directions. Consequently for twelve participants, thelongest step-wise data-flow between any two participants is six steps inthe appropriate direction. The theoretical peak instantaneous EIBbandwidth for 12 slots is therefore 96B per clock, in the event of fullutilization through arbitration between participants. This equates to atheoretical peak bandwidth of 307.2 GB/s (gigabytes per second) at aclock rate of 3.2 GHz.

The memory controller 1560 comprises an XDRAM interface 1562, developedby Rambus Incorporated. The memory controller interfaces with the RambusXDRAM 1426 with a theoretical peak bandwidth of 25.6 GB/s.

The dual bus interface 1570A,B comprises a Rambus FlexIO® systeminterface 1572A,B. The interface is organized into 12 channels eachbeing 8 bits wide, with five paths being inbound and seven outbound.This provides a theoretical peak bandwidth of 62.4 GB/s (36.4 GB/soutbound, 26 GB/s inbound) between the Cell processor and the I/O Bridge700 via controller 170A and the Reality Simulator graphics unit 200 viacontroller 170B.

Data sent by the Cell processor 1428 to the Reality Simulator graphicsunit 1430 will typically comprise display lists, being a sequence ofcommands to draw vertices, apply textures to polygons, specify lightingconditions, and so on.

Embodiments may include capturing depth data to better identify thereal-world user and to direct activity of an avatar or scene. The objectcan be something the person is holding or can also be the person's hand.In the this description, the terms “depth camera” and “three-dimensionalcamera” refer to any camera that is capable of obtaining distance ordepth information as well as two-dimensional pixel information. Forexample, a depth camera can utilize controlled infrared lighting toobtain distance information. Another exemplary depth camera can be astereo camera pair, which triangulates distance information using twostandard cameras. Similarly, the term “depth sensing device” refers toany type of device that is capable of obtaining distance information aswell as two-dimensional pixel information.

Recent advances in three-dimensional imagery have opened the door forincreased possibilities in real-time interactive computer animation. Inparticular, new “depth cameras” provide the ability to capture and mapthe third-dimension in addition to normal two-dimensional video imagery.With the new depth data, embodiments of the present invention allow theplacement of computer-generated objects in various positions within avideo scene in real-time, including behind other objects.

Moreover, embodiments of the present invention provide real-timeinteractive gaming experiences for users. For example, users caninteract with various computer-generated objects in real-time.Furthermore, video scenes can be altered in real-time to enhance theuser's game experience. For example, computer generated costumes can beinserted over the user's clothing, and computer generated light sourcescan be utilized to project virtual shadows within a video scene. Hence,using the embodiments of the present invention and a depth camera, userscan experience an interactive game environment within their own livingroom. Similar to normal cameras, a depth camera captures two-dimensionaldata for a plurality of pixels that comprise the video image. Thesevalues are color values for the pixels, generally red, green, and blue(RGB) values for each pixel. In this manner, objects captured by thecamera appear as two-dimension objects on a monitor.

Embodiments of the present invention also contemplate distributed imageprocessing configurations. For example, the invention is not limited tothe captured image and display image processing taking place in one oreven two locations, such as in the CPU or in the CPU and one otherelement. For example, the input image processing can just as readilytake place in an associated CPU, processor or device that can performprocessing; essentially all of image processing can be distributedthroughout the interconnected system. Thus, the present invention is notlimited to any specific image processing hardware circuitry and/orsoftware. The embodiments described herein are also not limited to anyspecific combination of general hardware circuitry and/or software, norto any particular source for the instructions executed by processingcomponents.

With the above embodiments in mind, it should be understood that theinvention may employ various computer-implemented operations involvingdata stored in computer systems. These operations include operationsrequiring physical manipulation of physical quantities. Usually, thoughnot necessarily, these quantities take the form of electrical ormagnetic signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined,compared, and otherwise manipulated. Further, the manipulationsperformed are often referred to in terms, such as producing,identifying, determining, or comparing.

The above described invention may be practiced with other computersystem configurations including hand-held devices, microprocessorsystems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics,minicomputers, mainframe computers and the like. The invention may alsobe practiced in distributing computing environments where tasks areperformed by remote processing devices that are linked through acommunications network.

The invention can also be embodied as computer readable code on acomputer readable medium. The computer readable medium is any datastorage device that can store data which can be thereafter read by acomputer system, including an electromagnetic wave carrier. Examples ofthe computer readable medium include hard drives, network attachedstorage (NAS), read-only memory, random-access memory, CD-ROMs, CD-Rs,CD-RWs, magnetic tapes, and other optical and non-optical data storagedevices. The computer readable medium can also be distributed over anetwork coupled computer system so that the computer readable code isstored and executed in a distributed fashion.

Although the foregoing invention has been described in some detail forpurposes of clarity of understanding, it will be apparent that certainchanges and modifications may be practiced within the scope of theappended claims. Accordingly, the present embodiments are to beconsidered as illustrative and not restrictive, and the invention is notto be limited to the details given herein, but may be modified withinthe scope and equivalents of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for streaming gameplay of a cloud videogame, comprising: executing the cloud video game to generate gameplayvideo; streaming the gameplay video over a network to a client device,the gameplay video being presented by the client device on a display;during the streaming of the gameplay video, transmitting one or morevisual assets over the network to the client device, the visual assetsbeing cached by the client device; wherein the cached visual assets areprocessed by the client device and combined into the gameplay videobefore being presented on the display, wherein streaming the gameplayvideo includes transmission of an identifier that identifies a given oneof the cached visual assets that was transmitted over the network to theclient device, and wherein the identifier further indicates where in animage frame of the gameplay video the given cached visual asset is to becombined.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the gameplay video that isstreamed is configured to exclude one or more visual components of thecloud video game, the excluded one or more visual components beingsupplied by the combining of the cached visual assets into the gameplayvideo at the client device.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein theexcluding of the one or more visual components of the cloud video gamereduces a data size of the gameplay video that is streamed.
 4. Themethod of claim 1, wherein streaming the gameplay video includestransmission of an identifier that indicates when in the gameplay videoa given cached visual asset is to be combined.
 5. The method of claim 4,wherein the identifier further includes one or more parameters thatcontrol a visual appearance of the given cached visual asset whencombined into the gameplay video.
 6. The method of claim 5, wherein theparameters that control the visual appearance of the given cached visualasset include one or more of color, size, orientation, transparency,brightness, or contrast.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the one ormore visual assets are selected based on a current game state of thecloud video game.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the one or morevisual assets are selected based on a predicted future game state thatis based on the current game state of the cloud video game.
 9. Themethod of claim 7, wherein the one or more visual assets are selectedbased on proximity of a player-controlled character to a location in thecloud video game.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein a timing of thetransmitting one or more visual assets is based on a monitored bandwidthusage or network condition.
 11. A method for streaming gameplay of acloud video game, comprising: executing the cloud video game to generategameplay video; streaming the gameplay video over a network to a clientdevice, the gameplay video being presented by the client device on adisplay; during the streaming of the gameplay video, transmitting one ormore visual assets over the network to the client device, the visualassets being cached by the client device; wherein the cached visualassets are processed by the client device and combined into the gameplayvideo before being presented on the display, wherein streaming thegameplay video includes transmission of an identifier that identifies agiven one of the cached visual assets that was transmitted over thenetwork to the client device, and wherein the identifier furtherindicates when in the gameplay video the given cached visual asset is tobe combined, wherein the identifier further indicates where in an imageframe of the gameplay video the given cached visual asset is to becombined; wherein the gameplay video that is streamed is configured toexclude one or more visual components of the cloud video game, theexcluded one or more visual components being supplied by the combiningof the cached visual assets into the gameplay video at the clientdevice.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the excluding of the one ormore visual components of the cloud video game reduces a data size ofthe gameplay video that is streamed.
 13. The method of claim 11, whereinthe identifier further includes one or more parameters that control avisual appearance of the given cached visual asset when combined intothe gameplay video.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the parametersthat control the visual appearance of the given cached visual assetinclude one or more of color, size, orientation, transparency,brightness, or contrast.
 15. The method of claim 11, wherein the one ormore visual assets are selected based on a current game state of thecloud video game.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein the one or morevisual assets are selected based on a predicted future game state thatis based on the current game state of the cloud video game.
 17. Themethod of claim 15, wherein the one or more visual assets are selectedbased on proximity of a player-controlled character to a location in thecloud video game.
 18. The method of claim 11, wherein a timing of thetransmitting one or more visual assets is based on a monitored bandwidthusage or network condition.